gear shift stuck in park on a 2006 dodge charger

Customer Question

Make sure your brake lights work ok. The front control module gets a signal from the brake switch. It then turns on the brake lights, but it also sends a signal to the shifter that you have pressed the brake and it's ok to come out of park. If the brake lights work ok we know the switch and the module are up and running.

This is almost surely a failure inside the shifter. It's not uncommon on these. There is a plastic peice of the interlock mechanism that breaks and it won't come out of park. The repair is to have the shifter replaced. It isn't an expensive part, and takes about an hour to replace.

You can try the override but it probably won't work. To the right of the shifter is the rectangle cubby hole. Pull the rubber insert out and there is a hole on the left side. Stick your finger through this hole and there will be an override button to push. Push this while trying to move the shifter. If that doesn't work you would have to remove the center console and pop the shift cable off of the shifter and move the cable by hand to get it in gear.